The Department of Defense (DoD) Inspector General (IG) says that military branches continue to ignore domestic preference laws.
In a DOD report on U.S. Navy contracts, the IG found that the Navy is not in compliance with the Buy American Act and the Berry Amendment. The Act requires the U.S. government to give preference to products made in the United States. Bulk purchases of more than $3,000 are subject to this act. The Berry Amendment specifically prevents the DoD from buying products such as clothing and textiles outside of the United States. The amendment applies to purchases of at least $150,000.
The IG report says half of the Navy contracts reviewed violated the Berry Amendment and more than one-third violated the Buy American Act. The IG had previously reported on the Army’s compliance in 2014 finding that 4 of 33 contracts violated the Berry Amendment and half violated the Buy American Act.
